


starry: skin

by sarangway



Series: starry [1]
Category: ASTRO (Band), 아스트로
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Soulmate AU, cute idk its soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-20
Updated: 2016-11-20
Packaged: 2018-09-01 05:13:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8610148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarangway/pseuds/sarangway
Summary: part one of the starry ficwhat are the chances that two boys unknowingly had the same idea to connect their freckles into the same constellation?





	

**pre-meeting: college yr 1**

_dongmin_

Yes, he knows that it’s fairly nerdy that he tattooed over his freckles to form a constellation. But when you’re insecure about that being the only blemish on your skin, it at least made it something endearing. Dongmin had lived as chubby and tan before, practically the opposite of Korean beauty, and he had worked hard to maintain his soft, milky skin and fit build. And there, right on the inside of his arm, was a freckle formation that was the only blemish on his skin. It was beyond frustrating, he had to admit.

                So, it just made sense to turn it into something that he could admire. After all, the annoying things seemed to look like the Libra constellation, and Dongmin did always want a tattoo. This was something simple and classy, as well as being unique. As an additive, he did adore stargazing and as a child was found staring at the sky more than where he walked. Overall, never in his life did he meet someone who had done this with their freckles and that made it a little more acceptable.

                Being a college student had led him to deal with girls talking to him strangely often, asking him out on dates when in reality he would rather be focusing on his studies. However, he understood that you must keep good relations, especially when someone was in your major and you would see them frequently. This led him to be in the situation he was in now.

                The girl across from him was rather pretty and he had to admit that…but it still felt awkward and he wasn’t comfortable at all. Nothing was as disheartening as knowing that the person in front of you found nothing interesting besides your face. Besides, he wasn’t often interested in girls it seemed and when he was it was often platonic anyway. Not that he would ever consider on acting on a love for the opposite gender – it was just something he had begun to notice lately. The whole ‘look at that girl’ and noticing her boyfriend sort of thing.

                This wasn’t entirely a worry for Dongmin. Besides being rather strong in his beliefs that who you love is who you love and you don’t have a choice with it, he didn’t want to dedicate time he could use towards being successful and use it for someone else. Time is precious and it was very necessary to use it wisely.

                Despite all of that, he still found himself sipping a horribly over sweetened drink with a girl who took more pictures of him than spoke words.

_bin_

                It would be a lie if he said that being a dorky kid majoring in dance against his parent’s will was _easy_. However, it was sure as hell satisfying. Staying up into the late hours rehearsing what seemed like impossible choreography wasn’t too bad when he had Minhyuk and his boyfriend, Sanha. Minhyuk and Sanha were younger than him so it wasn’t that he was a part of his classes, but he did enjoy dancing and he was an eager learner. Because of this, he would record the lessons secretly and they would hang out in his apartment to practice the dances and learn them together.

                Sanha was like a cheerleader, as well as their caretakers when they found themselves pushing too hard for the night. After a round of ramen or fried chicken, they parted ways and Bin generally spent an extra hour or so practicing. He had to admit that it was easy to fall asleep compared to high school.

                About halfway to the year, he did have Minhyuk notice the freckles formed on his arm, very strange and out of place considering he didn’t have any freckles anywhere else. So, on his nineteenth birthday, he decided to get a tattoo over them and connect it into the Libra constellation. Stars were something that Bin admired: the formations being something that awed him since he was a kid. The idea of so many unexplored parts of the universe just out of his reach was an inspiration to him. It was a pretty nice gift from Sanha and Minhyuk, in fact, and he found it to be a pretty cute thing.

                Then again, his parents didn’t seem to think so…but there was bound to be things that they disagreed on after he decided to go against them. It wasn’t noticeable if he wore a long sleeve shirt or jacket though, so it was alright. And he liked it, and his best friends liked it, so what did it matter anyway?

**meeting: college yr 2 – winter break**

                Dongmin didn’t mind this too much since the date was for karaoke. However…it was a bit disconcerting when he found out that the girl wasn’t going to show up and the karaoke rooms were all full except one. Of course, the one that wasn’t full had been reserved for some group of people, which meant that his trip there meant nothing and was a waste of time. He thought that he could have at least taken the chance to sing privately to let out the frustration.

                It seemed like the group of students walking in had the same reaction, at least that’s what he noticed when they sulked after the news of it being full. Dongmin couldn’t help but glance at the group once more, tucking his phone into his pocket. They were a strange group, two of the people still in high school uniforms, but one dressed casually in a hoodie and jeans. He wore some glasses too, his hair ruffled in a bed-head style. He was, Dongmin had to admit, a rather attractive person.

                But he had no time for that nonsense, and he was perfectly fine with admiring from a few steps away rather than approaching him. The woman at the counter seemed to have other ideas.

                Once a group had left, laughing and smelling slightly of a mix of alcohol and happiness, the woman had called both Dongmin and the group of students over, explaining that if they were alright with _sharing_ a room then they would have no problem getting a room now. The woman also asked if Dongmin had someone coming…and considering that there were other people he had to (and he hated it) bashfully admit that he was alone.

                The group glanced at him in surprise, the attractive boy lingering for a moment longer before turning back to look at the woman. She smiled, taking out the key for the room and handing it to the boy, as well as the menu for drinks and snacks and a ‘have a good time’.

                The dynamic was awkward from the beginning, even the walk to the hall being apparent as Dongmin caught on that the two high school students were together. Did that mean that the attractive boy was third-wheeling? This felt like a dauntingly uncomfortable situation to be in for the opportunity to sing some song. How in the world was he going to sing in front of these people that he didn’t even know? On top of that, this would mean that the attractive boy would probably end up talking to him a lot since they would be alienated as couples do sometimes.

                The boy opened the door, everyone slowly walking in and sitting on the cushioned couch. One of the uniformed boys grabbed the song chooser, the other – one with curly strawberry blonde hair – turned to introduce himself. “Hi! I’m Yoon Sanha! This is my boyfriend, Park Minkyuk, and our friend Moon Bin.”

                Dongmin gave a small nod, smiling at each of them. “Ah, I apologize for not introducing myself. I’m Lee Dongmin. I’m a student at the nearby university.”

                Sanha lit up, grabbing the attractive boy- er, Bin’s arm. “He goes there too! A second year!”

                “I can talk for myself, y’know.” Bin chuckled a bit, looking up through his glasses and making eye contact before looking away. “I’m a dance major.”

                Dongmin nodded politely, the idea of being able to go into the arts a novelty. After all, he had just barely convinced his parents to allow him to double major, which was understandable considering it would be rather difficult to actually get into the music industry. He was fine with doubling up with biological sciences, even if there was an underlying frustration at the amount of time it took up.

                The couple chose a duet…Wendy and Eric Nam if he could remember well. It was a sweet song and he had to admit that he felt a little jealous of their lingering stares and secret smiles between singing. Also, they were both rather amazing singers. “Bin-hyung! You should sing one too!”

                Bin took the tablet and flipped through the songs for a little, frowning at the tough choice and deciding on G.Soul’s “You”. Dongmin shifted in his seat, knowing that the ballad wasn’t easy by far. But it seemed that his friends had a full confidence in his abilities after he chose the song. Dongmin would be lying if he said that he wasn’t slightly interested in how he would handle the song, subconsciously leaning in and resting his chin in his hand.

                Just before Bin started, he loosened the hoodie from his arms and removed it, tossing it over at Minhyuk. As he did, Dongmin caught a glance at his arm, a tattoo flashing as he saw the strange freckle formation. Dongmin squinted, his hand falling to the table in surprise.

                “What should I say?” Bin’s voice started off soft, the emotion slowly trickling through. “How should I say it?”

                Dongmin stood up, his intent to ask where in the world he got the inspiration to get that tattoo…and to maybe see what in the world he connected them to be. But, the couple had another idea and they decided to shove another microphone into his hand and push him towards Bin to sing along. Flustered and glancing back at the pair before trying to sing along.

                “…this empty notepad, all day I sit and think.” Dongmin flanked from the screen down at his feet, and he couldn’t help but notice how well their voices seemed to smooth together. “But the only thing I can think about is…”

                His glance moved to look at Bin, their eyes meeting temporarily as they harmonized a ‘you’. But Dongmin wasn’t focused on the scene that looked rather romantic, he instead focused in on the arm and grabbed it, turning it to take a closer look. And, to his surprise, the inside of Bin’s right arm had a tattoo of the Libra constellation created by a connection of the freckles that stood out.

                The music for the song continued but the room fell silent, Dongmin pointing at the tattoo, speechless. “Er…Dongmin?”

                “This…this tattoo?” Dongmin’s finger traced over it in disbelief. “Why did you get it?”

                Bin looked at the grip uncomfortably, shrugging a bit. “Um…I got it for my birthday. I like stars and I guess I like the-”

                Dongmin let go of Bin’s arm for a second, just enough time to roll his own sleeve up and grab Bin’s arm again. Their arms were side-by-side and their tattoos next to each other. Bin shut his lips to stare at the arm, his vision closing in on the identical tattoos between them. If someone had seen them together, they would easily assume them to be couple tattoos. Minhyuk stood up suddenly, proclaimed he’d go get drinks, and pulling Sanha out with him.

                The air was tense now, the awkwardness clearly still there but ignored as Dongmin’s grip remained. But his actions did catch up to his brain and he couldn’t help but flush and let go of his arm. “I apologize.”

                “It’s alright…I’m still a little confused though-”

                “I really should get going.” Dongmin interrupted him for the second time, shuffling back a few steps and grabbing the wallet resting on the table. He was very overwhelmed at this new person and their situation and couldn’t help but turn to leave. On top of it all, they went to the same school and had the possibility to see each other. Dongmin’s head was spinning and he really couldn’t stand being in this room any longer.

                “Yah! Wait!” But he didn’t wait. He had to leave even if his curiosity said to listen…and his curiosity was definitely screaming right now. His mind led him out of the karaoke place, into the cold, and frowning as he rubbed his arm the entire way to the subway.

**second meeting: college yr 2 – semester 2**

                There was no reason for Dongmin to be so nervous entering the classroom, but he knew that this was a tougher music class and he barely had time for it. Knowing that it would be difficult to maintain a good grade made it unnerving from the second he walked in.

                And, of course, he had to bump into someone who was leaving. “Omo…sorry.” Looking up, however, he quickly recognized the face of his matching tattoo boy. Dongmin instantly tensed, his eyes averting in the hopes that he wouldn’t recognize him. But, of course, that failed and the boy gasped.

                “Are you Dongmin, by chance? The boy with the matching tattoo?”

                “Ah, no. I’m uh, I’m-” Dongmin scrambled for a pseudonym that he could think of, but was quickly cut off by a passing group of girls.

                “Dongmin-oppa! You look so handsome today!” As much as he appreciated the compliment, he wanted the floor to open under him and suck him away. Really the idea of seeing the boy after so long wasn’t the issue, but knowing how boldly he had acted made him uncomfortable.

                “So you are!” Bin let out a sigh and smiled, their close proximity after bumping into each other seemingly only making Dongmin uncomfortable. “Please don’t run away this time. I was really surprised that you had the tattoo as well…”

                Dongmin took another step back, his eyes darting between the clock within the classroom and Bin. “I’m sorry for leaving. But, er, I do have class now-”

                “Please take this! Even if you don’t call me or anything, please at least take it.” Bin held out a piece of paper with his number on it, bowing and shoving it into Dongmin’s hand. Bin’s smile was strangely contagious even in such an uncomfortable situation, and Dongmin couldn’t help but smile as well.

**Author's Note:**

> this is pt one ofc,,,,, its kinda long omg b u t i really wanted to get one part out so here u go!! catch me on tumblr @sarangway and @snowdawon


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